Snatcher's Library - Christmas Edition
by Dragon MoonX
Summary: A collection of fifty short stories, drabbles and oneshots written about our favorite Snatcher Scabior. Written for the Holiday Spirit Christmas Boot Camp challenge. This is basically a Christmas version of Family Life.
1. Advent

**Snatcher's Library - Christmas Edition**

Disclaimer: I'm not JK Rowling and I don't own her characters. However the OCs are mine.

A/N: special thanks to Anna Fay who gave me the inspiration needed to start this collection.

* * *

 **Prompt 1 - advent**

Christmas was Scabior's favorite holiday. He liked the tasty treats his wife made during the holidays, he liked drinking eggnog and getting presents. He also liked the advent calendar Draconius bought him every December. He liked it so much that it was difficult to keep him from peeking at the pictures and eating all the chocolates.

The calendar hung on the wall beside the hall closet. Scabior learned that if he opened the closet door, it would hide him from view while he ate all the chocolate. All he had to do was pretend to look for something in the closet, when in reality he was stuffing his face with sweets.

When his four year old daughter found out what he was doing, she too wanted some chocolate.

"I'll only give you some if you promise not to tell mummy wha we're doing," said Scabior.

Melody grinned. "Okay, daddy. I promise not to tell."

"Tha's a good girl." Scabior smiled as he picked up his little girl. "Now, which one of these windows do you want to take a peek in first?"

The little girl looked at the windows on the calendar, then pointed to number seventeen. Her father carefully adjusted his hold on her, holding her steady as he used his free hand to open the window for her.

Melody snatched the piece of chocolate out of the window and stuffed it in her mouth. She bit down on the piece of candy and the delicious taste of cherry juice filled her mouth.

"Is it good?" Scabior asked.

"Mm-hmm." Melody nodded.

Scabior pointed at the picture in the window. "Look, sweet'eart. Penguins. An there's three of them. A mummy, a daddy, an a baby, just like our family."

Melody looked in awe at the moving picture on the calendar. It showed a family of penguins, dressed in warm scarves and fuzzy hats and mittens, ice skating on a frozen pond. Snow was falling all around them, and there was a snowman standing off in the corner near the pond.

"It's pretty," Melody cooed around a mouthful of chocolate.

Scabior grinned. "You think so, ay? Alright. Let's try another one. 'Ow about number nine? Does tha sound like a good one?"

Melody nodded, and Scabior opened the window. He ate the piece of chocolate behind the window, this one containing a tasty filling of peppermint cream. And beneath the candy was a picture of a unicorn frolicking in the snow.

The unicorn had a colorful wreath around its neck, with bells on its ankles and a bright red ribbon tied around its horn. And as the unicorn merrily pranced and kicked up its heels, the sound of tiny, tingling bells could be heard throughout the hallway.

"Scabior? What are you doing in there?"

The Snatcher turned around and peeked out from behind the closet door. He didn't see his wife, but he heard her footsteps coming down the stairs. So he quickly closed the windows on the calendar, shut the closet door, and carried his daughter down the hall and into the kitchen.

They'd managed to avoid getting caught that time. And it wouldn't be long until Scabior and Melody went back to get some more chocolate.


	2. Angels

**Prompt 2 - angels**

Scabior was no angel. That much was obvious. He wasn't a good man, the perfect father or the best husband in the world. But he did the best he could, working to provide for his family and helping his wife take care of their baby girl.

Now Melody, she looked like a little angel, lying there asleep in her crib. She was only a few months old, and this was going to be her first Christmas. Scabior wanted to do something special for her, but he didn't know what to do.

He turned and looked out the doorway when he heard his wife's footsteps moving down the stairs, followed by a soft thump as something hit the floor outside their daughter's bedroom.

Scabior stepped out into the hall and spied a red, round ball lying on the rug. He walked over and picked it up, then looked towards the stairs and saw his wife carrying a box of Christmas decorations into the living room. One of the ornaments had fallen out on her way downstairs, so Scabior decided to follow her and lend a hand while she carried everything downstairs.

"You couldn't levitate the box of decorations rather than carrying it, love?" Scabior asked.

Draconius set the heavy box on the floor next to the Christmas tree in the living room, then looked up to see her husband standing at the foot of the staircase, one hand on the railing, a red ball in his other hand.

Scabior tossed the ball to her and she caught it. "Need a 'and?" he asked, a cheerful smile on his face as he walked down the last few steps and into the living room.

"Yes, thank you." Draconius nodded. "That'll make everything go a lot faster."

One by one Scabior levitated the ornaments onto the tree, while Draconius made strands of blue and silver tinsel magically wrap themselves around the tree, then came the candy canes and strings of popcorn until their tree was fully decorated.

As Scabior stood back and admired their work, he realized that something was missing. "We don't 'ave anything to put on top of the tree," he said, pointing with his wand at the bare treetop.

Draconius thought about this for a moment, then suggested conjuring a star to put on top.

"I don't think tha would be a very good idea, pet," said Scabior. "No offense, love, but your conjuration skills aren't exactly the best. I 'ave to go into town later to pick up a few things, so why don't I get us a decoration for the tree while I'm there?"

"Alright. Just as long as you don't steal it, Scabior."

"Right. No worries, pet. I promise I won't steal anything this time."

"This time?" Draconius glared at him with her hands on her hips. She didn't know that Scabior had stolen their Christmas tree.

.oOo.

After picking up some more eggnog and a few bottles of brandy and rum, Scabior headed over to the store to see what type of decorations they had. Most of what they had available were stars, as well as teddy bears dressed like Santa and prancing reindeer. But what caught Scabior's attention was the little angel with dark brown hair and blue-grey eyes.

She looked just like his baby girl. And as he looked around at the selection of angels on the shelf, he realized that it was the only baby angel they had left. All the others were boys or girls, not infants.

Scabior smiled as he looked at the chubby angel with pudgy little fingers and rosey red cheeks. It reminded him of Melody. And his wife agreed with him once he brought it home and put it on the tree, telling him that it bore a strong resemblance to their daughter.

"That's the gift we've been given this Christmas," said Draconius, standing with her arm around her husband as they gazed up at the little angel perched atop the tree. "A beautiful baby girl." She then turned to Scabior and gave him a kiss on the cheek, thanking him for the adorable angel that looked like their daughter.


	3. Bells

**Prompt 3 - bells**

Melody had known about her father's animagus form since she was a little girl. There were times when Scabior would turn into a lynx then roll around on the floor and play with her, pouncing on her as she giggled and laughed, swatting her hair and running circles around her as she tried to catch him. When they got tired they would curl up on the rug together in front of the fireplace, falling asleep and resting so they could play again later.

When Melody was really little, her mother had to teach her not to pull on daddy's tail or tug on his ears. Once she learned how to play nice with him, Scabior delighted in spending hours playing with her, keeping her happy and entertained as they rolled and played, running around the house and laughing as they went.

One morning while Scabior was taking a nap in his lynx form, Melody looked over at her father and suddenly had the urge to play dress-up with him. She went upstairs and got out the old Christmas sweater her mother made her wear when she was little. She'd outgrown it years ago, but it was the right size for a large feline. She also got some red yarn, bells, beads and pine nuts, and used them to make a necklace for Scabior.

Draconius had just left the bedroom and was heading towards the stairs when she heard the sound of bells jingling in the living room. She paused halfway down the stairs, listening as the sound grew louder. She could also hear Melody laughing as the bells continued tingling merrily through the house.

And then she saw it - Scabior running through the house in his daughter's old Christmas sweater with bells around his neck. He shot up the stairs, running past his wife, into their bedroom and dove under the bed. Moments later Melody came running up the stairs, her mother flattening herself against the wall as her daughter ran past.

"Melody!" Draconius called out. "What did you do to your father?"

She followed the eight year old girl into the bedroom, walking in just in time to see her daughter fish Scabior out from under the bed.

Melody held up her dad, showing off his necklace of jingling bells and red sweater with a Christmas tree printed on the front.

"Look, mummy. Daddy's all ready for Christmas now."

Draconius took one look at her husband and burst out laughing. Scabior was not amused, and flattened his ears against his head as his wife and daughter laughed at him.


	4. Candles

**Prompt 4 - candles**

As the seasons changed from fall to winter, so too did the decorations on the mantle above the fireplace. And when the cold snows of winter settled over Scabior's house, signaling that Christmas wasn't far off, Draconius made a Yule log with a piece of oak, made three holes in the bark and inserted some red candles, then decorated it with jolly, ivy and mistletoe.

The first time she made a Yule log and placed it on the mantle, Scabior looked at it and said, "So this is a Yule log. When I was younger, I used to think Yule log was another word for fruit cake."

"Fruit cake?" Draconius finished lighting the candles and looked back at him with a puzzled expression on her face.

"Well sure, pet. When my mum made fruit cake, dad always called it a Yule log. Probably because it was overbaked and looked like a burnt piece of wood. Sort of like my grandmother's brick burgers."

"I take it your mother and grandmother weren't very good cooks."

"No, they weren't." Scabior raised a glass of eggnog to his lips and took a sip. "It made great food for the ducks, though. Me and my father used to go to the duck pond an feed it to the ducks. Everything was fine until one of them almost choked on a gumdrop."

Scabior sat down on the couch, relaxing in the subtle glow of the festive candles that lit the room. There were red and white candles that resembled candy canes, which gave off a light minty fragrance when burned. There were also white candles with glimmering snowflake patterns on their sides made from gold glitter. Scabior was particularly fond of the ones with gold snowflakes, and asked his wife where she got them.

"I made them while you were at work," said Draconius. "All you have to do is use a sticking charm to make patterns and pictures using different colored glitter. Here, I'll show you."

She summoned a white candle from the mantle, along with a few small packets of glitter. "What sort of picture would you like me to make?"

Scabior looked at the candle in her hand. He thought about it for a minute then said, "'Ow about something simple, like strands of mistletoe?"

"Alright then. Mistletoe is easy enough. It's just a few spiky leaves and red circles for berries."

The Snatcher watched as his wife painted the glitter onto the candle. She moved her wand over the surface of the candle, making motions in the air like she was painting with a brush, causing the glitter to magically adhere to the candle.

Little by little a picture began to form on the wax. First came the outline of the leaves in green glitter, with veins in the leaves made from a darker shade of green. She filled in the spaces with more green, then added small red dots for berries.

"What do you think?" Draconius asked, handing him the finished candle so he could take a closer look at it. "I bought a book about making glitter art, and I've been practicing while you were away."

"I like it, pet," said Scabior, turning the candle over in his hands as he looked at the colorful designs. "I suppose you could use the same spell to put words on these things, right?"

"Why yes, you can. Why do you ask?"

Scabior grinned. "Finally a way to send my annoying relatives a Christmas gift while at the same telling them they aren't invited for Christmas dinner."


	5. Candy Canes

**Prompt 5 - candy canes**

Scabior wasn't happy with having to get his tonsils out on Christmas morning. He was in a lot of pain, and he couldn't eat any of the foods he usually ate during the holidays. He longed for a slice of pumpkin pie, or some gingerbread cookies and eggnog. But all he got was sorbet, chicken broth and applesauce.

The thing he missed most was candy canes. They were his favorite. And whenever his wife would decorate the Christmas tree with candy canes and strands of popcorn, Scabior would sneak off with a couple candy canes tucked in his pocket when Draconius wasn't looking.

He thought he would be able to eat all the ice cream he wanted, and that he could at least have some peppermint ice cream to make up for not getting any candy canes this year. That too was a special treat they put out in stores during the holidays, with bits of red and green mints in it. But his wife wouldn't let him have milk or dairy products while he was recovering from surgery.

Scabior lay in bed, watching the snow fall outside his window. He sighed and rolled over in bed, looking at the decorations his wife had strung up throughout the house. The bedroom door was open, and from where he was laying he could see strands of blue and silver tinsel wrapped around the railing on the staircase. Candy canes adorned the colorful strands of tinsel, and looking at them only made him crave their delicious minty flavor even more.

As he gazed wistfully at the candy canes hanging from the strands of tinsel, he began to wonder if maybe he could eat one of them without it bothering his throat. All he had to do was lick or suck on it. But it had only been four days since the operation, and his own saliva still felt like acid against the back of his throat every time he swallowed.

There was nothing he could do but sleep. He couldn't eat, he didn't feel like getting out of bed, and even if he could go out it was snowing outside. He fell asleep and dreamt of traveling to a world beyond the clouds, high above the earth where the clouds were made of pink cotton candy, the rocks were made of marshmallows, and giant candy canes sprouted from the ground like trees.

He saw himself in his dream, laying on his back in the sun beside a river that ran red with sweet smelling strawberry juice. He was using a marshmallow for a pillow, while licking a strip of peppermint bark he peeled off one of the nearby trees. The ground beneath him was soft and warm, like a cozy layer of delicious candy fluff. It smelled like bubblegum. And when he finished the peppermint bark, he used two pieces of marshmallow and some cotton candy to make a sandwich.

His dream was interrupted when Draconius placed her hand on his shoulder, gently shaking him as she roused him from his slumber. His eyelids fluttered open, and he saw his wife standing beside the bed, a gentle smile on her face.

"It's time to wake up, sweetie." She pressed a glass of water into his hands, and helped him sit up in bed. "I have something for you once you're finished with that. I think you'll like it, Scabior."

Scabior looked at the glass of water in his hand. He never imagined that the simple task of swallowing a bit of water could be so difficult. He shook his head, holding the glass of water out to her.

"Drink it, Scabior," Draconius insisted. "It'll help you feel better. And when you're done, you can have some of his for lunch." She motioned to the bowl on the nightstand. Scabior hadn't been awake enough to notice it when she first walked in. But now that he saw it, he noticed that the festive red and green bowl was filled with what looked like vanilla ice cream.

"I made this just for you. It's spearmint sorbet with a hint of creamy vanilla. I was going to use peppermint flavoring, but I think the flavor would be too strong. So I used spearmint instead. That should be milder and easier for you to swallow."

Scabior's expression brightened, and he quickly reached for the bowl on the nightstand. But his wife held him back, putting a hand on his chest and gently pushing him against the pillows.

"You need to drink something first," said Draconius. "Your throat dries out when you sleep, and it'll be easier to swallow if you drink something."

Scabior looked at the bowl of sorbet then back at his wife. There was nothing worse than forcing himself to drink water when he woke up. The first few sips hurt so bad he could have cried. But he wanted some of the vanilla and mint sorbet, so he raised the glass to his lips and took a few sips of water.

When he was finished, Draconius set the bowl of sorbet in his lap, and Scabior dipped his spoon into the bowl and started eating. He was eager to see what Draconius' homemade sorbet tasted like. And the moment the minty sorbet touched his tongue it melted in his mouth, soothing his sore throat as he swallowed it and went back for some more.

Scabior ate several bowls of spearmint sorbet that day, and his wife gladly gave him as much as he wanted, until he dozed off later that evening with a full belly and a content smile on his face.


	6. Cards

**Prompt 6 - cards**

A/N: thanks to Anna Fay for giving me the inspiration needed to write this chapter. You've got a truly brilliant mind, Anna. Thank you for your help.

Sheets of parchment littered the kitchen table, a bottle of ink and a few quills sitting beside a plate of gingerbread cookies and two glasses of milk. The warm scent of baking cookies drifted through the kitchen as the snows of winter slowly accumulated outside the kitchen window.

Scabior was teaching his daughter how to write while his wife baked cookies in the kitchen. The little girl gripped the quill in her hand, moving the tip across the parchment as a series of misshapen letters scrawled across its surface. She had learned how to spell her name, but was still having some difficulty with making sentences.

"'Old on, sweet'eart. You're going to crush it," said Scabior. He took the quill from her hand, showing her the proper way to hold it without squashing the feather. "See 'ere, pet. You 'ave to use a light touch. Don't smoosh it. Just 'old it steady and try not to grip it too 'ard."

His wife came over to the table, peering over Melody's shoulder as the little girl took the quill and started writing again. When she still had difficulty forming letters, Scabior took her hand in his, helping to guide her as she wrote a simple sentence on the parchment.

"That looks good, Melody," said Draconius, smiling at her daughter as Scabior helped her write. "I'm so proud of you, baby."

Melody held up a sheet of parchment with the words "I love you" scribbled across it. There were little hearts and flowers drawn around the words, and at the bottom Melody had signed her name.

The little girl waved the parchment in the air, turning around in her chair as she looked up at her mother. "Look, mummy. I wrote you a letter."

Draconius took the sheet of parchment, thanking her daughter for the lovely letter and kissing her on the cheek. She then turned to her husband and reminded him that he still needed to make out the Christmas cards.

Scabior sighed, leaning back in his seat as he reached for another cookie on the plate. He didn't like making out Christmas cards, and considered it a waste of time since most of the people he sent them to didn't bother sending any. Every year he'd send out nearly a dozen cards, and if he got three or four in return it was a miracle.

Melody looked at her father. "Daddy, can I help you make out the Christmas cards? I can write real good now, daddy. Please, daddy. I wanna help."

Scabior thought about it for a minute. She was getting better at writing, but if he let her make out the cards, the people who got them might not be able to read them. She still needed more practice before her writing was legible.

"You can sign your name on them," said Scabior, playfully ruffling his daughter's hair.

"Yay!" Melody cheered. "Did you hear that, mummy? Daddy says I can help."

It was adorable, watching his little girl squeal with delight at being allowed to write her name on the Christmas cards. Scabior summoned the box of cards from the kitchen drawer. He figured that since they were already at the table, they might as well get to making out the cards.

.oOo.

Melody enjoyed helping her father make out Christmas cards. And while she was helping him, an idea came to her regarding what to get her parents for Christmas. She waited until her parents weren't looking, then swiped some parchment, ink and a quill, taking them to her bedroom where she began making Christmas cards for her mother and father.

Scabior and Draconius were woken up by their daughter on Christmas morning, the little girl crawling across the bed with a pair of homemade cards in her hand.

"Mummy, daddy, wake up! It's Christmas! And I has presents for you!"

"Presents?" Scabior queried, opening one eye and peering out from beneath the mound of blankets on the bed. He slowly sat up in bed. His wife was already awake, their daughter sitting in her lap and grinning from ear to ear. He wondered what it was that Melody had made for them, and then he spied the cards in hand.

"For you, daddy," said Melody, holding a card out to him.

Scabior rolled over onto his back, taking the card from Melody and opening it. She had drawn a picture of what he assumed was a Christmas tree, with hearts and stars around it and the words "merry Christmas" written beneath the tree.

A smile creased the corners of his mouth, and he put his arm around her, hugging her and thanking her for Christmas card. "It's beau'iful, sweet'eart," he said. "An wha about you?" Scabior asked, turning his attention to his wife. "Wha does yours look like?"

Draconius held up her card for Scabior to see. Hers had a picture of a snowman on it, which turned out a lot better than the tree on Scabior's card. There were snowflakes around the snowman that looked more like stars than snowflakes, but Draconius loved it all the same. And so began the tradition of Melody giving her parents home made Christmas cards every year as presents.


	7. Christmas carols

**Prompt 7 - carols**

Scabior had never been fond of Christmas carols, nor did he enjoy listening to them every time he opened the front door. It seemed like no matter where he went someone was singing Christmas songs. Everyone except his wife, who was kind enough to lay off the dreadful tunes since she knew how much her husband hated them.

However this didn't stop her from asking why he hated them. To which he replied, "It's because I don't like 'aving all tha festive merriment shoved up my arse. If I was a nice guy an liked tha sort of thing, I would 'ave joined the Order an gone around spreading joy an gifts. But I don't, pet. I steal from people an ruin their 'oliday by snatching their children right out from under their noses on Christmas Eve. Now does tha sound like a person who 'as a lot of Christmas spirit?"

Draconius couldn't help but chuckle. "No," she said, a grin creasing the corners of her lips. "It makes you sound like the Grinch."

"Yeah? Well, I bet 'e could come up with Christmas songs tha sound better than wha they've been singing." Scabior paused, a smile forming on his lips as realization suddenly dawned on him. "'Ang on a minute. I could make my own Christmas songs. Wouldn't take much, pet. Just a bit of work an changing a lyric or two."

"No." Draconius laughed, thinking that maybe he was joking. She knew the kind of songs he usually wrote. And if given a chance, Scabior could easily take something as innocent as a Christmas song and turn it into something naughty.

"Yes, pet," he said, pushing his chair out and rising from the table. "You wait an see. We'll 'ave a splendid 'oliday this year, once I make us a proper song or two."

Scabior retreated to their bedroom to start writing music and testing different tunes on his guitar. He was determined to put together a decent Christmas song, one that didn't give him a headache and make him want to scream when he heard it. It took a while, but one fine morning the week before Christmas he emerged from the bedroom, standing with his guitar at the top of the stairs.

"Draconius," he crooned sweetly, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

His wife stopped what she was doing, her hand on the banister as she looked up at him. He strummed a few notes on his guitar, took a deep breath, and began to sing.

"I wish I could see you naked, I wish I could see you naked, I wish I could see you naked an down on all fours."

Draconius snorted and put a hand over her mouth, trying in vain to stifle the laughter bubbling in her chest.

"Pulling down your pants, yanking off my own. Underneath the mistletoe I'll make you scream an moan."

"Really Scabior, I don't think - " Draconius began, only to be interrupted by Scabior's rendition of Have A Holly Jolly Christmas.

"'Ave a 'ottie naughty Christmas, it's the breast time of the year. The eggnog from my Yule log will fill your cup with cheer. 'Ave a 'ottie naughty Christmas, an when you trim my tree, I'll stand below the ladder so your balsam fir I'll see! Oh ho, the mistletoe, 'ung where you can't see. Your stocking waits for me to stuff on good ole Christmas Eve!"

By now Draconius was almost in tears, laughing so hard that she was doubled over with both hands on the banister. "Merlin bless you, Scabior! That's brilliant."

Scabior descended the stairs, his arm around her waist as he swept her off her feet. Draconius yelped, and was quickly silenced by a fierce kiss as his lips came crashing down on hers.

"Whaddaya say, pet?" he said, smirking as they came apart. "Would you like me to give me you an early Christmas present this year?" His fingers cupped her chin, lifting her head so that she was gazing into his blue-grey eyes. "I promise you'll like it. Got it all wrapped up with a lovely little bow an everythin'."

Draconius nodded and let him carry her upstairs to the bedroom. She couldn't resist his delightful music, and before the night was through she'd help inspire him to write a couple more songs.


	8. Chimney

**Prompt 8 - chimney**

The holidays season meant congested highways, long lines at the airport and travel plans that often went awry due to storms, flight cancelations and grandma getting run over by the occasional reindeer. The wizarding world was no different. Just replace reindeer with hippogriff and you're good to go.

It wasn't unusual for there to be mixups in the floo network during this time of year. When people drank too much, and when the ministry tried to handle an increased amount of traffic moving through the floo network, people sometimes got lost and wound up stuck in someone's chimney. And unbeknownst to muggle children this is how the legend of Santa Claus came to be, a legend that would come to life on Christmas Eve when an intoxicated Snatcher attempted to return home under less than favorable conditions.

Scabior had just finished dropping off another load of muggleborn children when he got caught up in the festivities taking place at the Ministry of Magic. He was now drunk on a combination of firewhiskey, eggnog and rum, and was having difficulty locating the ministry fireplaces so he could go home.

Damn those ministry Christmas parties. He only meant to stop buy for a few minutes after work, but had ended up staying until half past two in the morning. He staggered upstairs, and all but collapsed in front the first row of fireplaces he saw. A simpering smile spread across his face, chuckling as a half empty bottle of booze slipped from his fingers and rolled across the floor. This was perfect. He needed a toilet, and these empty fireplaces doubled as a lovely commode.

He crawled across the floor, forcing himself to his feet as he neared the extrance to the fireplace. It was most unfortunate that Bellatrix choose this moment to arrive, right when Scabior decided to relieve himself in the fireplace.

At first she didn't realize what was happening. There was a half second pause, her eyes traveling downwards as the warm smell of urine filled her nostrils. When she saw that her shoes, as well as the lower half of her dress was soaking wet, she looked at him and screamed, "You pissed on my shoes!"

"An a merry Christmas to you to, pet!" said Scabior. He then zipped up his pants, shoved her out of the way, grabbed a handful of floo powder and vanished on the spot.

The next thing he knew he was moving towards an unknown location, with unfamiliar houses flying past. Perhaps he shouldn't have had so much to drink before attempting to navigate the complex system of fireplaces. But it was too late for that now, and within a matter of seconds he ended up lodged in a narrow passageway with his feet dangling above an unlit fireplace.

He was stuck, wedged in the chimney of someone's house. And to make matters worse he had no idea where he was.

Scabior twisted and squirmed, swinging his feet as he tried to free himself. He cursed under his breath, planting his palms against the stone wall in front of him and trying to scoot down the chimney. He thought he could feel something hard brushing against the tips of his boots, and was rewarded with a dull thump when he kicked his feet and sent a log rolling across the floor.

It took several minutes of twisting and maneuvering before he was able to raise his hands above his head and slide down the chimney. Scabior hit the floor and landed in a heap in the middle of the living room, startling a small girl who had been sleeping under the Christmas tree.

She looked up at him, her eyes wide and shining with curiosity. "Are you Santy Claus?" she asked, her long, brown hair falling forward into her face as she crawled across the floor to get a better look at him. She came to an abrupt halt when she smelled the stench of alcohol on his breath. "Ew, you smell like daddy!" she said, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

Scabior stared at her, his senses dulled to the point where he no longer knew where he was or why this little girl was sitting on the floor in front of him. He didn't even remember how he got there. Last thing he remembered was someone offering him a drink at the party. Then one drink turned into four then five, and the next thing he knew there was a little girl complaining about how he smelled like her father.

He opened his mouth to speak and felt his insides twisting into an uncomfortable knot. The room spun before his eyes, the floor tilted sideways and he stumbled on his hands and knees across the living room, looking very much like an unfortunate animal stricken with mad cow disease. Scabior groaned as he felt the contents of his stomach rising into the back of his throat, and lurched forward as he vomited on the base of the Christmas tree, splattering several packages in the process.

The little girl shrieked, her shrill voice causing a shooting pain to stab the back of his skull. Scabior came within an inch of blacking out, his knees buckling as he tried to stand, which sent him stumbling into the wall as he forced himself onto his feet.

"I 'ave to get out of 'ere," he mumbled, his speech slurred from the amount of alcohol he'd consumed. One look at this place told him that it was not a magical home, which meant that he could apparate without fear of being held back by protective wards.

He took a deep breath, mentally preparing himself for what he was about to do, then thought of his home with Draconius and vanished on the spot. Scabior returned home safely, leaving behind one very confused little girl who was now running upstairs, crying that Santa Clause had gotten sick on her family's Christmas tree.


	9. Christmas cookies

**Prompt 9 - christmas cookies**

Scabior wasn't the perfect man, nor was he the perfect father. But he tried his best, and when the holidays rolled around he did what he could to ensure that his wife and daughter were happy. If that meant joining them in the kitchen for some holiday baking, or staying up late with his daughter while she waited for Santa to arrive, then so be it. Yes, he was exhausted from working overtime during the holidays, but that didn't stop him from spending time with his family.

And when night settled over the forest, the snows falling on one of the coldest, longest nights of the year, Scabior sat down in the overstuffed armchair beside the fireplace with Melody on his lap. There was a plate of milk and cookies on the table beside the tree, conveniently located near the armchair so they were within reach of the hungry Snatcher.

He was waiting for her to fall asleep so he could eat the cookies, because what parent didn't help themselves to a holiday treat after the children went to bed? And although Draconius had scolded him for wanting to eat all the cookies, Scabior reasoned that since the parents were like secret Santas that did all the shopping, the cookies belonged to them. Or him, if he could manage to eat them all before his wife found out.

"It's not my fault," he told Draconius, giving her his sweetest smile so she wouldn't be mad at him. If there was one thing this man knew how to do it was turn on the charm, and it seemed to be working. "The cookies are irresistible. Much like yourself, pet. An I can't 'elp but think 'ow nice it would be if you let me spread a little of tha frosting on some of your cookies," he said, eyeing her and giving her a wink.

Draconius rolled her eyes. A faint smile curled the corners of her lips. "You're incorrigible," she said, slapping him on the back with a wooden spoon. "Now scoot before Santa decides to get you coal this year for being naughty."

"Tis the season to be naughty!" he called out, fleeing from the kitchen before his wife could hit him again with the wooden spoon.

And now here he was, several hours later, asleep in the overstuffed armchair with his daughter in his lap. One arm was wrapped around her waist, her head against his chest as they rested in peaceful slumber. He knew that if he sat her down and started telling her bedtime stories she'd soon fall asleep, then the cookies were his for the taking. But he was so tired that he'd barely managed to make it halfway through the plate of cookies before falling asleep.

That was how she found them when she walked into the room, her gaze drifting towards the father and daughter asleep in the chair. Scabior was snoring softly, with cookie crumbs nestled in the folds of his plaid scarf. Some of the crumbs had landed in his daughter's hair, and if you looked closely you could see traces of powdered sugar clinging to the side of Melody's purple nightgown.

It was quite a mess he'd made, but they looked so cute together. Draconius decided to let them be, and quietly slipped the presents under the tree while they slept.


End file.
